Farewell, My Love
by CherryTree
Summary: When they went to the Gatewater Hotel, everything seemed to be going great. Maya couldn't stop grinning, Pearl was taking a huge interest in everything she saw, and even he was having a great time. Somewhere deep down though, he knew he shouldn't have let her go with that bellboy. He just didn't know that that may be the last time he saw her. Spoilers for Farewell, My Turnabout.


"Now, the moment you've all been waiting for!"

A flash of light follows the much-anticipated words.

"Who will be this year's Grand Prix Champion?"

Excited murmur filled the room.

"Who will be our 'Hero of Heroes'!?"

The glorious sound of ecstatic cheers and claps are followed by a wonderful array of lights, showing the contestants.

"Will it be last year's runner-up, Jammin' Ninja!?"

"Or maybe Captain Saipan all the way from the lovely tropical island of Saipan!?"

"I see the students of a certain Starry School are raring to win!"

"And Global Hero Onyankopon doesn't want to go home without the prize!"

Attention was drawn to each hero as their names are called, stage lights shining vibrantly on every one.

"We hope lady luck is with all our heroes tonight!"

"And now!"

Anticipation rose at the statement. What will happen next?

"The winner of the third annual Hero of Heroes Grand Prix…"

Screams were barely contained as the crowd awaited the final announcement.

"IS ME!"

Eyes searched the stage hungrily, hoping to find this year's true hero.

A strike of the sword, and the image of the moon shifted, as if the moon itself had been struck.

"Whoooooooooa! The true hero of the night has appeared in our midst!"

"It looks like this year's Grand Prix goes to this fantastic warrior!"

"The Nickel Samurai!"

Cherry blossom petals floated down from the sky.

"Too bad, Jammin' Ninja. Looks like the title eluded you again this year!"

The viola hall was brightly lit, and none other than Maya Fey was cheering with the best of them.

"Alright! Yes! Did you hear that, Nick!? Did you!? The Nickel Samurai! He did it!"

Phoenix Wright stood beside her, holding the hand that isn't waving around wildly behind their backs, away from a certain tiny medium.

"Yeah, he sure did…" He sighs. "I'm getting to old for this."

Will Powers spook up next.

"Ah, I'm proud of the guy for doing the series justice."

Pearl's tiny voice was heard.

"U-Um…so the person everyone is cheering for…I guess he got the prize?"

"Yup!" Maya replied, a huge grin plastered across her face. "You know who we're talking about, right Pearly? 'The Nickel Samurai'!"

Pearl shook her head. "No. Every Sunday, I only watch the Educational Channel's 'Kids' Masterpiece Theater'."

"Okay, that's it! From now on, it's 'The Nickel Samurai'! All the kids watch it!"

Pearl turned to Nick. "Do you like 'The Nickel Samurai' too, Mr. Nick?"

Maya eyes glinted playfully. "Nah, he's an old fart, so he's not allowed to watch it anymore."

Nick played along. "That's right. But I do like 'Kids' Masterpiece Theater'."

Maya laughed. "Hey, I didn't know you were so young at heart, Nick!"

"Mr. Nick! You're a grown up! You're not allowed to watch it anymore!" Pearl exclaimed. "You're supposed to act your age and have interests that match."

"…It's very important." Nick and Maya blushed, simultaneously letting go of each other's hand that they were holding behind their backs.

"Aw, give it a rest, Pearly!" Maya thundered, completely red-faced. Nick just scratched his head, grinning nervously. One of the many reasons they didn't tell Pearl they were together already…

Powers' booming laughter filled their ears.

"Looks like I made the right choice in inviting everyone here. I'm glad you're all having a good time."

"Aaaah…it's like a dream!" Maya said distantly, as if in another world.

"Too bad for the Jammin' Ninja though." Powers added. "Last year he lost to The Pink Princess: Warrior of Little Olde Tokyo. I thought this might be his year…"

"Yeah…" Maya nodded a little sadly, then perked up. "Oh, hey, did anyone else think the Jammin' Ninja was a bit different today?"

Pearls tilted her head, confused. "Different? What do you mean?"

"Um, well, he wasn't carrying his bright red guitar." Maya mused.

"Hey, you're right! Strange he'd walk around without his signature guitar." Powers cocked his head in thought.

Phoenix inwardly sighed. _'I will never understand these people and their shows…'_

"Anyway, Mr. Powers, thank you very much for tonight."

"A-Aw, it was nothing…I owe you one, so it's just my way of saying thanks." Powers said dismissively. Maya grabbed Phoenix's arm and pointed to the direction of Gatewater Hotel's lobby.

"Hey, Nick! Come on! It's time to get going to the lobby! There's a post-ceremony stage show that's supposed to start real soon."

"And then, I heard there's supposed to be a press conference after that." Powers added.

"A press conference? Is he going to make a speech about winning this year's prize?"

Powers shook his head. "Uh, well, not exactly…Something about the Nickel Samurai confessing something."

Nick rose his eyebrows. "Confessing…? Sounds pretty serious."

Maya started pulling him towards the lobby. "Argh! Nick! COME ON! You don't want us to be the last ones there, do you!?"

"Yeah, Mr. Nick! Do you!?" Pearl chimed in.

'_Why me? The show doesn't even start for another twenty minutes…'_

XXX

After getting the dirt of the Jammin' Ninja and the Nickel Samurai and receiving their passes to the press conference from Powers, the foursome made their way to the lobby to hear Matt Engarde's confession.

"Ooh…I'm all ready to use my special 'Samurai Power'."

'_Maya looks like she's ready to start a fight…_'

A voice rang from the PA system.

"Your attention please, your attention please."

"The Nickel Samurai's Post-Ceremony Stage Show will not be held tonight due to unforeseen circumstances."

"WHAAAT!? WHYYYYY!?" Maya exploded, pinching Nick.

"Oww! You didn't have to pinch me! Pinch yourself if you don't believe it!" Nick whined.

"We are asking for everyone's cooperation at this time."

"So please stay where you are."

"…This is a special request from the police."

Pearl's shrill "eep!" echoed through the room amongst the commotion caused by the announcement.

"P-Police? Did they just say the police?" Nick whimpered.

"D-Do you want me to go check out what's going on?" Powers suggested.

"Um, wait, I'll come with you…"Nick offered, but before he and Powers could take a step…

"Freeze!" Both froze as told.

"You two! Didn't you just hear the announcement just now!? It just finished telling you not to move!"

"Th-that voice…I've heard that voice somewhere before…" Maya stuttered.

"Honestly, youth these days can't be bothered to listen to other people when they talk!" The stranger complained, appearing before the group in a spacesuit complete with a ray gun at the ready.

"Just the other day it was the same thing! Therewasasmallfootbridgewithasignnexttoitthatsaid 'Beware, BridgeOut!' ,butwouldhelisten!?No,ofcoursenot!Hesaidhe'dbecare fulandonlywalkonthe'in'partofthebridgesincethe'out 'partiswhatwasdangerous!Iamnotkiddingyouhere!Theki dsaidthatandreallymeantit!WELL!Ireallylethimhaveit andknockedhimclearoffthatbridge!Honestly,kidsthese daysdon'tknowrightfromwrong,Itellyou!"

"This non-stop chatter…" Powers shivered.

"I-It can't be…" Phoenix shook his head. "…Ms. Oldbag?"

"…" The chatterbox stranger took off their helmet to reveal none other than Ms. Wendy Oldbag. "What is it, you young whippersnappers!? Do I know you!?" The old lady glanced at Powers, then did a double-take. "…Wait. YOU! You're Powers, aren't you!?"

"Y-Yeah…" Powers cleared his throat. "Um, about what happened back then…"

Wendy grinned wickedly. "You didn't get nominated last year either, did you? Oh, that's right. You're doing that children's exercise program, trying to play nice." He nodded reluctantly.

"Ah, yeah, that's me. Thankfully I still have a job."

"Ilovethatshow,andyou'reahoot!You'rethebigbrotherc haracter,right?Yes,evenwithyourfacecoveredbyamask, .Whataworkofartbutthat'showitisyouknow?Imeanifyoud idn'twearthemask,whoknowshowmanytvsyou'dbreak? ' 'tbeanywhere…"

"Um, what are you doing here?" Phoenix interrupted.

"Look at my uniform and tell me you can't tell I'm a member of security!"

"But that outfit…" Maya mumbled.

"Annoying, noisy brats get the blaster!" Wendy screeched, pulling out her ray gun and repeatedly firing. To no one surprise, nothing happened except the gun sounding off like a drum.

"What happened to your old job at Global Studios?" Nick questioned.

"Oh, after the 'incident', they let a lot of people go, including me. Guess they didn't like me testifying. Afterward, the handed me the pink slip." Wendy sighed. "I thought about being a bodyguard, you know."

Maya eyes widened. "You? A bodyguard?"

"For your friend! That fiery, good-looking guy with the red jacket and the ruffles."

"M-Mr. Edgeworth?" Wendy nodded.

"Yes, but…"

"_**That sort of arrangement would be entirely too troublesome for me**_."

"That's what he said to me. What did I ever do to deserve that!?" Wendy's ray gun sounded again.

"So what happened tonight?" Maya asked.

"I don't have any details, but…it looks like other 'incident' happened again."

Powers clutched his handkerchief. "A-An 'incident'? Like a murder?"

Wendy grinned evilly. "Maybe. You see, I'm a bit of a devilish woman. So wherever I go a rain of blood will come pouring down."

Nick's eyebrows connected. "Um, then shouldn't you quit being a security guard, for other people's sake?"

"Silence, whippersnapper!" The ray gun sounded once again.

"Hey, Nick!" Maya whispered.

"W-What is it? I don't like that devilish smile playing at your lips…"

"Let's make like we're going to the bathroom, and check out the scene!"

"N-No way. The police told us to stay here, remember?"

"HUH!? How boring!" Maya boomed. "You're such a boring guy! You've got no motivation! No spirit!"

"Huh? What? What's going on?" Pearl jumped in. "Are you giving Mystic Maya trouble again, Mr. Nick?"

'_Not you too, Pearls…Please don't stick your little nose into this one.'_

Maya grinned impishly. "So listen to this, Pearly. This one time at lawyer camp, Nick…"

"O-Okay, I get it! Let's go take a look." Nick caved.

"Yay! I knew you couldn't say no to me, Nick!" Maya cheered.

"That's right!" Pearl squealed. "You'd walk over miles of hot coals for Mystic Maya, wouldn't you, Mr. Nick?"

Although he wouldn't admit it, Pearl was right. Every single wild adventure Maya took them on, Nick carried on with little to no resistance, even if his wallet was empty and he was sore all over at the end of the day. In truth, Maya kept him alive most days.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go! You can come too, Pearly."

"Goody! I get to come! I get to come!" Pearl shouted.

The group made their way to the hall to find nothing out of the ordinary.

"Hmm, guess the murder didn't take place here…" Phoenix observed.

"Alright then! Let's try-" Maya was cut off by an unfamiliar voice.

"Excuse me. Are you by chance, Ms. Maya Fey?" A bellboy appeared.

"Um, yeah…that's me." Maya replied hesitantly.

"You have a phone call waiting at the front desk."

"A phone call? I wonder if it's someone from Kurain Village…"

"What's wrong, Mystic Maya?" Pearl asked innocently.

"Oh, nothing. I'll just go and check it out."

"Okay."

"Right this way Ms. Fey." The bellboy said, leading her towards the front desk.

"Let's go look somewhere else now, Mr. Nick." Pearl said, urging him to the hallways.

"Yeah, okay."

'_Why did I have a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as soon as Maya left…? Maybe we should have gone with her...' _Nick shook his head. '_No, she'll be fine.'_

With that lingering thought, he and Pearl went into the hallway.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

**A/N: Why yes, I'm back here again. I know I said Christmas, but I just started the fourth case in Justice for All…so of course I had a serious PhoenixXMaya moment. I was crying "MAAAAYAAAAA!" when I found out what happened to her. I think I have a serious Maya obsession.**

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed the first chapter. Thanks for reviews and such will be put in the next chapter.**

**I also wanted to kind of explain this a little bit. At first I thought it was going to be a huge romance story, but with the case part thrown in, the romance most definitely won't be as center stage. It will NOT be taking a back-burner in this story at all, I can guarantee, even if it wasn't as evident in this chapter. This was just more of an introduction to the case and such, as well as a reminder of the case to players who got their hands on the game as soon as it came out, as that was quite a while ago.**

**I feel as if this story is a sequel to Heat Wave, but then again it's really not. You don't have to read it to get this at all, in fact it's just the case, but with my romantic spin on it.**** Hopefully this turns out well!**

**God, it took forever to do Wendy's rambling. '-_-**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Phoenix Wright. Das Capcom's job, ya?**


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